


Nightsky

by tide_ms



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragons, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Dragon Riders, F/F, Telepathic Bond, developing feelings, mild nudity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-04
Updated: 2018-09-04
Packaged: 2019-07-01 15:56:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15777306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tide_ms/pseuds/tide_ms
Summary: The Dragon Power had chosen her, and Bora had been running away ever since. But now she found a reason to stay.





	Nightsky

**Author's Note:**

> \- Prompt was: sua/jiu as dragon/rider, with soulbonding.
> 
> \- I think I bit more than I could chew with this plot, so the ending is sort of lacking. Apologies for that. I definitely want to write more in this universe, though, so hopefully I'd manage to do so.
> 
> \- All of DC are mentioned in the story, but not named. Can you spot who is who? :3
> 
> \- Hope you like it.

 

If someone told Bora that she would be saving her city, Jolan, from being demolished by the Ocean Monsters while in her dragon form, and along side her fellow trainees from the Dragon School, that she didn't even want to join, she would have laughed and told them don't be absurd.

She would have done that not only because the Ocean Monsters were too wild and hot-headed -- despite growing up within each calming wave of the ocean -- for a notable attack, but also because she was never going to use her Dragon Power.

But maybe the Ocean Monsters had stopped being chaotic and stood together for once. And maybe her running had finally come to an end and she had to face her destiny.

  
Bora thought about that as the bells rang endlessly to alarm them, and chaos boomed in the city.

  
It was way past midnight, but from where Bora was standing in the Dragon Sanctum, there seemed to be a fallen star at the shores of Jolan, shining over the city and creating a hesitant sunrise in the horizon.

Bora tried soaring into the sky, if only to join the teachers and the Skilled Forces that were filling the sky with their thundering roars and colorful flames. If only to see the gravity of their loss -- and there was a huge loss, Bora figured that out already when Teacher Im ordered all trainees to join the fight.

She tried harder to fly high, but ended up flapping her wings like a panicked fledgling and falling to the ground.

  
Bora was smaller than most dragons, but her blue fire was the most scorching. In her dragon form, she was black with a shimmering end to her tail. A stellar beauty, her battle arts teacher had commented the first time he saw her.

She blended well in the night sky.

She was a deadly weapon, and she needed to join the fight. Somehow, she knew she could help, and she didn't want to wait for her teachers to protect her again.

The other trainees were still with her in the sanctum, confused by what Teacher Im had just said, and seemingly afraid to make a similar attemp at flying.

They knew they were of no help without a bond with a rider.

  
There were screams and cries in the distance, they were loud enough to be heard along the screeches of dragons and monsters alike.

Bora growled in frustration, she heard someone flinch, purring weakly behind her, then she quickly gathered her strength and flew to the Riders' Dormitory.

 

 

  
"You know anyone with the Dragon Power is required to train, Bora."

She was being childish, Bora knew that. Climbing to the top of the tree in her dragon form, panting and weak, just to escape the Dragons Scouter?

But nothing could make her change her mind.

Her tail and wings got tangled more than one, but stubbornly, she continued until she reached the top with trembling feet and exhausted heart.

  
Then hesitantly, she peeked downward.

The Scouter's eyes were fixed on her, arms folded.

"I'm not leaving until you come with me."

She was stubborn as well.

Bora growled in answer.

"It isn't a prison, Bora, and despite what you might have heard, the bond will not trap you with a rider forever. You'd only need to learn Balance and then be on your own. No one will bother you again."

Bora knew that. Well, the bond part. But she also knew that one was the shifter and two made the dragon. It was a popular saying that tried to explain why shifters couldn't handle the Dragon Power instantly on their own, but no one really knew why.

However, Bora thought it was a weird concept, one full of burden. Until she's able to fly on her own, the rider would have to guide her, help her carry and control the mighty power she possessed. And she would have to protect the rider at all costs.

That was a great responsibility that Bora didn't want on her shoulders.

Not to mention the Ocean Monsters. They were eternally desperate to have the Dragon Power, willing to do anything. And Bora didn't want to fight any of them.

Quiet lingered for a moment. The birds kept on chirping and the trees kept on gently swaying with the winds. Jolan was most active during this hour of morning, and dragons were ever so loud and noisy in the distant sky.

But the quiet was unsettling.

Bora could hear a lot in her dragon form, even the Scouter's non-faltering determination, apparently.

"Pirates attacked your home once, didn't they? When you were a child." The Scouter started with a steady voice, every word she said suddenly poking at Bora's heart. "Do you think the outcome would have been different if the training was mandatory back then as it is now?"

Bora wasn't looking at her, she clung to the branch barely carrying her weight.

"They were frivolous pirates, Bora. With ridiculously inept and clumsy skills in magic, and yet they almost destroyed half of the houses just for laughter. That happened solely because the dragons in your island could not stop them."

Bora took deep breaths, trying to calm her pacing heart -- trying to stop the memories from flooding her mind. Images and voices from afar, unfolding in her mind despite her refusal.

She was being hugged, protected. It was impossible to hide from them. The attack happened in a school day -- it was a lovely day, but then it wasn't.

  
The Scouter's voice brought her back to this moment. "If the Ocean Monsters were the ones who attacked, your whole island and everyone would have been wiped. You included."

The words stung. Bora snarled, trying to fly down to the Scouter but ending up falling at her feet with a heavy thud that made sand and dirt scatter around her.

She growled in anger, thin flames of blue emitting from her mouth. It should be a blazing fire that she just breathed out, but she's weak without a bond, without the Balance, so all she managed was a few, pathetic wisps of an elusive power.

The Scouter's features softened then. (Not that she had been gloating over Bora's misery, Bora realized later.)

"Don't you remember the first time you shifted? The power you felt? You still have that power, Bora, don't you want to use it?"

 

  
There were several rules to follow in the Dragon School, but none really struck a nerve in Bora to the point where she couldn't bother to genuinely put an effort in training.

  
The dragon-shifters had their own practice place. A whole sanctum built in such a complicated structure to help them practice every maneuvering trick and fighting technique there was.

  
It was beautiful, sort of alluring Bora to wnader through and rest under its trees. There were decorated pillars, huge openings in the ground that led to a changing maze. There were underwater routes as well, and ranges with falling rocks and all kinds of tiny threats. Oh, and there was a shaky ground that demanded the gentlest of steps -- none of the trainess succeeded in crossing it yet.

Bora would be lying if she said the sanctum alone wasn't what made foreign excitement flicker within her.

 

  
There were more riders than there were shifters. This was how it had always been, Bora knew this from the queries she asked vaguely after getting the Dragon Power. And she did pretty well with being sneaky, no one knew she was a dragon-shifter for three whole years.

  
But there were things that had no answers. The bond, the real one and not the technique that anciant teachers had created to help new shifters and riders.

No one knew how the Bond worked, why it chose this rider but not that one. This had always hurt a lot of people's pride, Bora also knew this through her past queries. The training year usually ended with only less than half of the riders bonded to dragons.

Regardless, every rider training in the school would get the chance to fly on a dragon, even if at the end they might not be able to experience the Bond.

It was a funny solace, Bora supposed, not that they deserved any. Riders were so annoying, this Bora discovered not even a week into training, and despite rarely crossing paths with them.

"They probably think the Bond is like relationships and they should woo you for it to happen." Teacher Im had told the class of shifters. She was a rider, and even she thought most riders were annoying. "But little did they know, relationships were more complicated." She had added with cheerful smile. "They're fools, ignore them with no regret."

  
Teacher Im was the only rider Bora liked.

 

  
Aside from the trainees who were aiming to join the Dragon Skilled Forces, shifters and ridres didn't spend much time together. Most of their days went into practice, and with the little time and energy that left them, they rarely bothered to meet up and bond like regular human beings.

They trained in different places of the school, with a huge distance between them because apparently, trainees would easily get confused and overwhelmed by the Bond when there were several matches around.

Of course, Bora didn't believe the school's worries until one day she was struck by the Bond. The real one.

  
She was doing well in training so far and she could feel herself grasping her power that she decided to try soaring into the sky on her own. It seemed simple, it felt easy, and she was getting higher and higher when suddenly there was sheer quietness inside her head, deafening and intense.

Then it was broken by a voice that wasn't hers.

The voice came within a stream that poured into her. It hit her consciousness like lightning and shattered her focus that she involuntarily shifted back to her human form. Midair.

  
Cold was the one thing Bora realized at the same time as falling. She screamed, hair whipping in all directions before she squeezed her eyes shut in a panicked effort to shift back.

She succeeded feet away from the ground.

She hit the ground, nevertheless.

The thud from the impact was strong and Bora felt vibration travelling through the ground swiftly then back toward her.

Or so it felt before everything stilled.

There was quiet again, and then there was pain.

Bora groaned, it came out as a growl while trying to untangle her limbs and wings.

She had been a drgaon for over three years now and she still found trouble navigating her movements the way dragons were supposed to. Gracefully, powerfully, maybe a little frightening, too.

  
The voice was back in her head, energy flowing with it. It sounded panicked now. _Are--Are you okay?!_

Bora was okay, dragon were mighty after all, but she was angry as well, and so she roared. Her throat and mouth burned with a smoothe sensation that she had forgotten, and finally, she breathed fire. A real fire that felt as though it had been trapped within her heart for an eternity.

It was blue, the most scorching of dragons' fires. The sun made the flames look as though they were sparkling.

it was breathtaking.

Bora breathed it out again, enamoured by how her fire had the shade of a beautiful, blue sky. (She was settled, Bora would remember later. She would remember the sheer extent of the Dragon Power.)

Then she was shocked, the thrill of seeing her own fire again still searing through her.

Training with the teachers had yet to help her breathe fire.

It was then that Bora noitced the voices outside her head, whispering and giggling.

There were a group of riders gathered, all shocked and talking amongst themselves as they stared at her.

One of them was standing in the front, worry clear in her eyes as she gazed at Bora -- neck craned up and mouth agape.

Bora couldn't look away, completely drawn into the depth of her eyes.

(One of the riders commented on Bora's dragon size, they barely contained their laughter, but where some other time Bora would have answered their mockery with a frightening growl -- she had gotten better at those -- now she wouldn't bother or be bothered by it when she was enchanted by the concern look in the rider's eyes.)

She neared her hesitantly, and Bora noticed her uniform. Or to be exact, she noticed the Shifter's Cloak that was part of it.

"Hey, Minji, ask her to do the fire thing again," someone spoke, directing his words to the one in front.

Minji.

The cloak looked good on her as it swayed in harmony with the wind, Bora thought fleetingly.

The riders were supposed to wear those cloaks all the time so that when the dragons shifted back into their human form in the most inconvenient of moments, they wouldn't have to walk around naked.

Bora had never really liked the idea of shifters' cloaks in the first place. Mainly because she disliked riders. She did know that the idea had started in the Dragon School long, long ago, so naturally, it spread across all of Jolan and now held several purposes other than protecting the shifters' nudity.

The cloak looked like some sort of an unneeded decoration, Bora thought, they made the uniforms look fancy, but on Minji, Bora found it majestic when every time she caught glimpse of it as she walked the city's streets, she found it unimpressive.

(Deep down, Bora knew it was a good thing that it became tradtion considering the amount of times someone discovered their Dragon Power right the middle of the plaza.)

  
_Are we bonded?_

The rider asked, her voice inside Bora's head made her flinch.

Bora fidgeted, mumbling in unease. She tried to handle it like the teachers had taught her, but this was different, and before she could do anything, the link wavered and got cut.

Bora flew then, escaped Minji's presence.

 

  
Bora was distracted that whole day.

She had been hoping she would reach Balance with only the help of the teachers' artificial bond, but someone as inexperienced as her had gotten inside her head and showed her the true power she was harboring, and now she's unsettled. Overwhelmed.

  
Teachers had told them this. The bond they used to teach them was nothing comparing to the real one, they should be prepared and ready for when the time came.

Bora knew all of that, and yet that knowledge could not help her handle the connection properly, and she ended up being frightened by the strength she was capable of.

  
(She was also intrigued, both by it and by the rider she bonded with and the Dragon Power. But Bora wouldn't admit of that.)

  
It was too much to handle, so Bora left. She melded into the darkness of the night and hoped none of the guards would catch her.

And they didn't.

She could finally leave Jolan like she had been planning to for so long.

But then there was a distant thunder. No, not thunder. It was an explosion, more than one, and they shook the forest's ground under her feet like an earthquake.

 

 

Bora heard her fellow trainees all around her. Their growls were like faint ripples in the air, but that was pretty much the extent of their mightiness without a bond or Balance. Their breathing got heavier with each second passing by, a proof of their struggle. (A few of them continued the rest of the way on the ground.)

  
Bora tried not to think about the fact that she escaped in the middle of the night. Or the fact that panic was the reason why.

There was an attack on Jolan, an attack so severe that it reached the forest beyond the school, that it made her return without having second thoughts.

With fear simmering in her pacing heart, Bora had returned to find that the Ocean Monsters attacked and that Jolan -- that everyone was in danger.

 

Yoohyeon was a silvery beast that pierced the air in a final leap and reached the gathered riders first.

She attempted to land.

Bora could see it would not be a smoothe landing.

She didn't judge, however, not when her own nerves were fried by the same fear Yoohyeon and the others must be feeling.

Yoohyeon hit the ground hard, spraying dirt and sand and grass all over the place with her huge form. The riders shrieked in shock, one of them tripped and fell.

Thankfully she missed swiping the frozen-with-fear ones with her tail as she rolled a couple of times before quickly standing upright.

Bora landed properly, she made sure not to embarrass herself when her dragon size was already the subject of jokes.

  
Yoohyeon's rider was already heading toward her -- a girl with a hair color that resembled a pink fire -- she had a helmet in her hands, raised high for Yoohyeon to wear.

Once she put it gently on Yoohyeon's nose, it unfolded effortlessly until it covered the dragon's head and neck all the way to her back where the shape of a saddle appeared and settled without a hitch.

  
All of them were watching in awe, Bora noticed as one of the riders was ushering everyone to hurry up with gentle commands. "If you weren't bonded, head to the city and aid the wounded! Be safe, and look after each other!" He was telling them.

Bora quickly remembered earlier that day, and soon her head was stormed with frantic thoughts about the Bond.

She was tensed now, claws digging into the ground as more dragons and riders bonded. Her eyes glanced fleetingly over the riders, her posture suggesting fury instead of a calling.

Then she found her. Minji. And at the same time, familiar quietness replaced her chaotic thoughts.

Minji seeped into her without trouble, Bora recognized her immediately as the rider made her way through the mass.

Like the first time they bonded, Bora was suddenly not weighed down by the Dragon Power. She was grasping it with ease.

Bora felt it flourishing.

_Nightsky!_

Minji let out, her voice clear in Bora's head as much as the thundering noise in the city.

_Nightsky?_

Bora asked internally, but it was like a wondering rather than an explicit question as she felt the two of them settling within each other.

  
Minji didn't answer, or she missed to answer as she stood in front of her, a helmet hugged to her chest. Bora couldn't quite see her eyes properly because she's wearing the protection goggles already.

She looked amazed, nonetheless. (Bora didn't realize she sensed Minji's amazement before she saw it.)

Bora purred, nudging the helmet with her nose. That seemed to bring her rider out of her daze and back into their current situation.

 _The Ocean Monsters don't usually attack like this. It must be really big that the school felt the need to send us,_ Minji said absently, putting the helmet on.

Bora didn't know how to reply to that, the steadiness of her pounding heart faltered into trembling beats when Minji caressed her nose before climbing on her back.

In that moment, Bora noticed the remaining riders. The silence looming over the yard as dragons left one by one with their riders on their backs.

She's about to ask if Minji was ready, but it felt like Minji was about to ask the same.

It felt as though they had fallen into the same smooth flow, the same heartbeat.

  
Eventually, neither one of them asked, and Bora pierced into the sky effortlessly.

 

The ocean had pearls. Magical and powerful pearls, and they were the Monsters' weapon.

Bora had seen one before, displayed in an antique shop. It had lost its dangerous power, but not its shine.

Now these pearls burned all over the southern shores of Jolan where the battle was ongoing. Their smell was heavy, addled, and Bora had the feeling that soon it would be suffocating.

A huge part of the city was damaged, a lot of buildings collapsed -- a cloud of dust rising high all over them, but then through the smoke and dust, Bora saw what was so dangerous about this attack. What was the fallen star.

 

Jolan was the only city with dragons, and the Dragon Power was the only thing that mattered to the Ocean Monsters in it. They believed they could obtain it from its original bearer. From Bora and the others.

It was a false belief, no one could ever do that. The Dragon Power was mysterious, as ancient as time itself, and no one had uncovered why only half of Jolan, perhaps less than half of it, were chosen by it.

But the Monsters were stubborn, they would not believe the truth. They would only answer Jolan's efforts to communicate with them with more magical schemes and more hunting. They would not rest until they catch every dragon.

 

As they beheld the scene in front of them, Bora found that their loss was indeed severe because their attackers went as far as cloning dragons.

Or to be exact, they made a monstrous shape of dragon. And those monsters flew out from a pearl as bright as the Sun -- an endless swarm -- only to collide with the buildings in an attempt to destruct.

No wonder the Skilled Forces couldn't win the battle already. For every cloned dragon they killed, two emitted out of the pearl easily. Some even had Monsters on their backs.

  
They seemed to be aiming their fires toward the pearl, which was stationed on a wide ship near the harbor. Bora noticed, or it felt like someone told her about it. Minji.

  
_What are we going to do?_ Bora asked, angry, already feeling helpless, and quite close to panic again.

 _Anything and everything we can._ Minji said, but she was in a similar state to Bora's, and so instead of focusing her grasp on her own focus, Bora fell into Minji's, which was unfamiliar and scary.

Minji gasped when Bora writhed and vertically flew down, and right toward the center of the battle -- she was confused and completely out of control over her concentration.

_Wait!_

  
Teachers had warned them about this, about letting their consciousnesses collide instead of finding that thin thread that connected them with one another and settling into it together. But knowing what she should do and actually doing it were entierly different.

  
Bora was burning from the inside, a swirl of conflicted emotions growing within her so fast.

_Up! Nightsky, go up!_

Minji was clinging to the saddle, Bora could feel her tensed limbs as much as she could feel her nervousness and fear.

She felt them as sheer as she felt her own, and that was too much.

She barely dodged the Monsters' dragons, she heard shouts from several riders, but she couldn't stop. She wanted to burn the pearl. Winds stroked her body, sharp and hot, her fire caught a few of the hideous dragons.

But then there was a gentle hand on her neck.

_Calm down. Nightsky, listen to my voice._

  
Bora screeched, catching a monster between her teeth and spitting it right out.

_We have to go up, we have to follow the battle formation. Nightsky, I'm right here with you, listen to my voice._

  
Then she felt her rage simmer down, right after a stray thought showed her how reckless she was being.

Minji was counting on her to keep her safe, what if she fell or got hurt because of what she had just done?

  
Bora's mind quickly cleared, it felt as though her mind and body were in sync again.

Minji was still soothing her neck. She was afraid, and Bora was sorry.

_You got this._

_I'm sorry, I-- I..._

Minji adjusted her hold on the saddle before replying gently. _I know. Follow my voice, okay? to the right, do you see them?_

Bora immediately understood what Minji meant. Without hesitation, she breathed out her blue fire the moment she was in range with four of the monsters and their creation.

The relieved breath that Minji let out upon hitting their targets was enough to make Bora's strength surge within her.

Within the both of them.

 

 

  
Morning came and shone the light on their weakness rather than the victory they've achieved with difficulty.

Not one attack had ever inflicted such damage on the city, on the shifters' and riders' spirit. Their enemies were getting stronger, it was unspoken yet widely realized fact.

The remaining teachers gave them no time to grieve, to cry or even sit down and take in all that had happened. All that they've lost.

 _Sweep the borders of the city, and then do it again._ These were their orders.

Some of the Skilled Forces chased down the remaining of the Ocean Monsters' army all the way to the bluest and deepest parts of the ocean. They had fled the moment the pearl was destroyed and the cloned dragons ceased out of existence.

Everyone else looked for the injured and the dead under the rubble.

It was going to be a rough time for Jolan.

 

Bora grolwed without her notice, the sight of buildings collapsing was an unwavering image in her head. The cloned darongs were clearly mindless, having headed straight into anything they could leave a devastating impact on.

 _What's wrong?_ Minji asked, _Do you want to take a break?_

She didn't want a break, she needed one.

Despite how comforting the view of the golden sun rays washing the hills and the trees and the shores with ease, with solace, both of them needed some actual rest.

 _No,_ Bora answered, she almost sounded defeated. She slowed her flight to enter the forest. She spotted Yoohyeon and a couple of dragons near the river. Morning's shine looked wonderful on their figures where it lingered with sadness on their fallen comrades' bodies.

  
Bora didn't know everyone's names. She hadn't bothered because she was leaving once she got the hang of this power she possessed, but like the first time she had shifted into a dragon, something changed; something fell into its place.

Bora understood that quickly as the smoke started to fade from the sky. The Ocean Monsters have always been her enemy, even before she got the Dragon Power.

She couldn't leave again, she shouldn't escape again.

 _Why did you become a rider?_ Bora asked Minji in an effort to veer her mind away from everything. She sounded so sudden and she knew it, but she could handle the heat of embarrassment for doing that.

The link was steady enough that Bora sensed whatever Minji was feeling, and what Minji was feeling was an unnerving mixture of anxiety and relief, of sadness and hope. And exhaustion.

_I think the answer might disappoint you._

_Unless you just wanted to fly on the back of a dragon like some riders did, I won't be disappointed. Promise._

Minji laughs. _They aren't being subtle about it, aren't they?_

 _Nope, not even trying. I'm just glad I don't have to practice with them, and Teacher Im said that this kind of riders drop out even before finishing basic training._ Bora said as she flew through the trees, then upward once they reached the clearing and out of the refreshing greenery. She could feel Minji easily dodging every branch and every block in their way -- even guiding her with her hands through the saddle's grip.

A moment of silence passed before Minji told her her reason.

_My parents wanted me to continue the family's tradition. Every generation in our family had a dragon or a rider, or both, joining the Skilled Forces, and since I wasn't a dragon, I had to become a rider._

Bora frowned. Mentally frowned as she searched for a landing spot at the cliffs. Perhaps near the waterfall so she could freshen up with the water.

The reason wasn't exactly infuriating, but it was upsetting in the way that Minji didn't have a choice in this.

Sort of like her.

  
_I'm sorry._ Bora eventually said. She was partially focusing on finding a spot to land where the others in the sanctum could see them, and partially angery because that was a stupid tradition.

_Don't be. Even though it's a stupid tradition, I got to meet you._

Minji was smiling, Bora guessed. At least it felt like she was smiling.

_I almost got you killed last night._

Minji now laughed, a soft sound that almost made Bora speed up to reach the cliffs.

_You were overwhelmed by the Bond, I could feel you fully, remember? So I can't really blame you. And you made it before any of us got hurt, I would say you did well in your first battle._

  
Bora landed near the waterfall. The cliff was high, overlooking the forest separating the school and Jolan from the rest of the world.

  
Minji dismounted and instantly lay one the wet ground with a groan.

_Don't ruin my cloak._

_I think it's a little too late for that, remember the battle we had a few hours ago?_ Minji said, eyes closed and lips parted in an adorable smile.

There was a nice breeze that draped over them with coolness. It was most needed after the battle's air last night.

The rushing water had calming effect on their hearts, as well, Bora was thankful for that.

 

Bora remained in her spot for quite a few seconds, watching her rider. There were stains of smoke all over her white uniform.

White was really a bad uniform color, who chose that?

In the moment of deep thinking, Bora didn't realize that Minji was now looking at her. She looked sleepy, her smile was lingering. It's a different one now, softer and wider.

 _You're really like a night sky, Bora._ Minji told her, and that brought heat to coil in the pit of her stomach. _Beautiful._

  
Bora purred faintly. She didn't realize she had done that, but when she did, she froze, trapped in the charm of Minji's smile, of her fixed gaze, and her own embarrassment. Then she abruptly turned without a reply and flew toward the fallen water.

  
*  
*  
*

  
Two days later, everyone gathered in the Dragon Hall. It was a fancy, opened space built in the middle of the school to hold graduations ceremonies and official celebrations, and in the darkest of times, to mourn those whom they've lost in their endless war with the Ocean Monsters.

Today wasn't for any of those reasons.

They gathered, all in human form, to recieve their orders from the city council.

Riders on one side, shifters on the other. The difference in numbers was glaring at first, but then the former students of the Dragon School trickled into the hall -- the riders' colorful Shifter's Cloaks dancing on their back. (Bora would fleetingly admit that the sight lifted her spirit up a little. The morning had been bleak just a while ago, but now, there was a sense of hope descending gently on them.)

They fell in line with them, and somewhat, their numbers were almost even.

Some of them were old, grey strands in their hair, and some looked barely older than Bora. But they were undenibly overflowing with defiance, with the Dragon Power.

  
Seniors and novices alike, they stood side by side with their back straight and gaze fixed on the remaining teachers as they explained what the council had planned for the days to come.

  
Bora listened carefully until she couldn't because an annoying thought passed through her mind with a buzz. Again.

Bora couldn't help but to wonder if Minji would recognize her in her human form.

It was silly, really, but as far as Bora could remembered, she hadn't met Minji before that day at the twin lakes. (Maybe she should have bothered and put effort to socialize like the others instead of focusing on training.)

Bora rolled her eyes at herself. She was being ridiculous, but she also knew that ever since they've gathered in the hall, with little sleep and rest, Minji hadn't looked at her. Not even once.

Yoohyeon noticed her unease.

"Someone is distracted. Maybe by the new trainees' leader?" Yoohyeon whispered, a tinge of playfulness in her voice.

Bora turned to her. The softest of smiles was gracing her face, but she remained focused on the teachers while unmistakable sadness shone in her eyes. (Bora had seen it in the other trainees' eyes, the ones who survived.)

Bora glanced one last time at Minji before facing the front again.

  
They were dismissed a few moments later, and one by one the senior shifters transformed into their dragon form. Easily, they bonded with the riders. Some of them knew each other already, but others had never met before.

They looked flawless as they shifted, as they flew into the sky. Some didn't even have a rider for they've already mastered Balance.

  
Bora watched in awe, she could sense the other trainees falling into the same state as her.

Amidst waiting for her turn to shift, Bora heard her name being called by a familiar voice.

She turned, Yoohyeon beside her did as well, and through the moving sea of shifters and riders, Minji was making her way to her.

Bora's heart instantly started to pace.

Minji's face brightened when Bora met her eyes, her hesitant smile was quickly painted with shyness when Yoohyeon greeted her loudly as she came to a stop in front of them.

Bora smiled, feeling as though all of her nerves and muscles being ignited with scorching heat that lingered mostly in her cheeks.

It was a new sensation, unfamiliar. And yet Bora had not noticed anything beyond how relieved she was.

Minji recognized her.

  
Bora's smile widened, silly joy sinking in the pit of her stomach that let a moment of awkward silence to linger. They were staring at each other, probably aware that they should say something. Anything.

Yoohyeon then cleared her throat and told them that she'll see them in the air in a rather honeyed tone of voice.

"Hi," Minji said again, cheeks turning into a rosy shade.

Bora greeted her back, and even though it's the smallest word, she almost choked on it due to inexplicable nervousness. She quickly tried to diver attention from her slip, if there was any. "You got promoted, that's great!"

Minji beamed, but her smile faltered. "Not exactly, I'm the eldest among the riders now, they didn't really have a choice after Taeil--" she paused, and it's so clear that she was at loss for words.

"I'm sorry," Bora hurriedly breathed out, thoroughly regretting bringing up the matter.

Minji shook her head, smiling softly again.

"We didn't really get to know each other, we were always busy training, but he treated everyone well. I could see that he gave his best as our leader." She sighed, a shimmer in her eyes tugging at Bora's heart. "I just hope I don't disappoint the others."

"You won't." Bora told her without hesitation. It was simply the truth, Bora could feel it. "I know you will give your best as well."

Minji looked as though she was pleasantly surprised before speaking again. "Can I be honest with you?"

Bora nodded.

"This is not how I imagined training would be."

Bora could relate to that. "Me, neither," she told her with a breathy laughter.

Minji smiled again, it looked content now. Bora was happy for that.

Then they're just staring at each other again while the hall was getting quieter and quieter.

Minji looked at her as if she was charmed.

"This is the first time we meet like this, right?"

"Sort of." Bora replied, and blushed when she realized that the one time Minji had seen her in her human form she was falling from the sky, naked and shrieking.

Minji chuckled then. She lowered her gaze fleetingly before fixing it on the others leaving the hall.

"I..." Minji began, hesitantly meeting her eyes again. "I'm glad they'll let us work together again. Even if it's just for a little while."

Bora's lips twitched with a smile of happiness. Minji saying that had instantly left her with a fuzzy feeling in her chest, warm and good. "I feel the same."

(Bora completely ignored that this meant training would get longer later on because for inexperienced dragons, remaining bonded to the same person for a long time made it hard to bond with someone else. The school didn't have a choice considering the current circumstances, however. A stable bond was the most needed thing right now.)

 

The trainees would have to do guard duty until the Skilled Forces were able to protect the city fully and thoroughly again. They have suffered the biggest loss amongst all of Jolan, Bora thought it was the least they could do to help them get through these rough times.

The council wasn't expecting any attack in the near future considering the Ocean Monsters' casualties, but they weren't taking any chances. Every dragon and rider in Jolan capable of helping would be assigned a post to guard.

The trainees had been ordered to remain in their dragon form until further notice, and upon hearing that, Bora hesitated. It was a fleeting moment, bearing not uncertainty with it, but nervoueness because she had never gone into her dragon form for more than a few hours.

  
Bora wanted to help, however. As much as she could.

She hadn't planned on doing so, but ever since the night of the battle, she was filled with unfaltered readiness to use her Dragon Power, even if it overwhelmed her.

(Bora hadn't dared to think about her escape. If she had been faster, she might have crossed half the forest already. She might have missed knowing about the attack.)

 

Being in her dragon form without the intention to shift back was strange at first. Unfamiliar and unnerving that she kept pacing until Minji stopped her firmly.

It hadn't even been that long since they started their watch. The school had picked this location specifically for Bora because she would be able to melt into the darkness of the night easily in such an exposed post. The highest tower in the school.

  
Minji barely reached the end of her neck -- but it was the other way around when Bora was in her human form. She was hugging the dark coat and blanket around her tightly, the chill of the night had long settled by both the quiet and the looming Winter's winds.

 _Focus on our link, just for a moment to settle down._ Minji told her. Bora had noticed that she didn't speak outwardly even though she could, it won't be much of a difference. But Minji spoke in the one way Bora had when she's in her dragon form. Bora was appreciative of that.

_You are nervous, too._

Minji smiled with embarrassment. _Not as much as you._

Bora mumbled something _It's still nervousness._ She was conflicted and weighed heavily by the dragon form.

_Let me try guiding you into it, then. Teachers say the link work from both ways._

Minji squeezed her eyes shut, wrinkles appearing on her forehead as she concentrated hard.

She looked tired, Bora thought. With her dragon's senses, she noticed how Minji kept her posture straight and formal; she was tensed, expecting danger that hopefully wouldn't occure. But also she was earnest to fulfill her task fully, Bora was already sure of that.

Her hands were clenched into fists, breathing even.

  
Bora's heart swelled, recalling how Minji kept her attitude positive all this time -- despite the fear, the danger they had gone through, the pain and loss -- while she already was desperate to shift.

While she had already panicked because of the bond, escaped her duty without hesitation, and almost got them killed by panicking again during the battle.

(There was a fleeing thought, one that Bora would linger on later: Minji looked adroable while trying to calm Bora down.)

Duty, yes. Bora focused on that at that moment. As a dragon-shifter, she had a duty.

 _I left._ Bora suddenly said, regretful and sorry.

Sorry for Minji, whom she barely knew.

Minji peeked at her with one eye, nose still scrunched up, and brows still furrowed in a serious look.

_What?_

_I had just reached the forest when the attack happened._

  
It took Minji a moment to register what Bora meant.

She let out an _Oh_ , it was soft and probably the first sound Bora heard outside of her mind for the last few hours.

Her features softened, eyes studying Bora as if she actually could spot anything in the darkness. Though by now, her eyes must have adjusted to the lack of the light already.

 _Why?_ Minji asked internally.

Bora felt embarrassed. She searched for the best way to explain, but she found none that made sense.

She huffed, then shook her head and finally sat down.

_I have always wanted to leave Jolan -- well, not always always, but since a very long time. Then I got the Dragon Power and things changed. I still wanted to leave, but I didn't know if I could anymore. If I should._

Minji seemed to understand what Bora was pointing at. "Dragon Power belongs to Jolan", she said absently.

It was an old saying that Bora heard all the time. No dragon wants to leave Jolan, they say, and Bora knew it was a myth because shifters left all the time and she still wanted to leave.

  
The floor was made of stone, it was freezing cold now that Bora felt it with her whole body. It must be worse for Minji, she thought.

Hesitantly, Bora adjusted her position in invitation. She didn't explicitly say it, but she raised her wing high enough for Minji to notice the implication.

Minji was surprised at first, but then she quickly replaced that look with one that couldn't cause awkwardness. Probably.

She smiled, and settled against Bora's shoulder comfortably.

They let the silence fall upon them then, they let their closeness wash away all the daunting thoughts. (Bora didn't notice this until she was sighing with ease.)

 _Do you still want to leave?_ Minji asked.

Bora's mind was clear now, focus within her grasp.

 _I don't know. I don't want to leave while Jolan is in danger._ She answered Minji, who was silent again before turning to meet Bora's eyes.

_You came back. Whatever you want to do after all of this, you came back when we needed you, Bora. Don't beat yourself up for it now._

Bora wanted to ask: how did you know I was feeling bad about it? but then she remembered, the Bond was for more than communication and balance.

Minji's words were genuine, Bora couldn't help but to be comforted by them -- but to feel thankful to hear them.

 

  
Their night shift ended the moment the Sun peeked at them from the horizon, and their afternoon one started at three. They would roam the sky above a section of the city and keep watch until night fell.

They rarely saw their fellow trainees, everyone was busy giving their all, but occasionally, Bora and Minji crossed paths with some of the Skilled Forces as they flew by.

Bora and Minji always had the same reaction to their presence: awe.

(Well, except for that one time they came across the Noisy Rider and the Orange-Like-A-Fire Dragon as they finished their afternoon shift. Bora didn't know their names, but she rememberd them from the battle.

Bora was sure half the noise came from the rider's battlecries and shouts as her dragon easily turned the Monsters and their creation to ashes.

They had been playing with kids when Bora and Minji spotted them. To be exact, the Noisy Rider was sitting on the saddle with the kids and acting out an attack with invisible swords and invisible fleet.

The Fire-like Dragon looked patient while the kids seemed to be forgetting all about the destruction around them.

Minji must have found the scene in front of them adorable, Bora felt that through their bond. She saw it in Minji's fond smile.

Strangely, Bora was happy that Minji witnessed something genuinely delightful.)

  
Most of the Skilled Forces were guarding the shores of Jolan, and Bora heard that they were doing that all the way to the Broken shores; a huge part of land which had seprated centuries ago, creating seven big islands and a few small ones.

Bora felt indifferent about that information despite that one of those islands was once her home.

 

  
It took Jolan five days to clear out the rubble that was in a critical places. Five days of Jolanians working non-stop, of dragons moving debris out of the way and distribuating aid throughout the city.

The contrast between pearl-burned areas and the intact areas was glaring from above, Bora tried not to think about it, but it was hard not to when the whole city spread endlessly below her.

The area of the battle was brown-ish and stained with smoke while the rest of the city remained a delight to the eye with its vivid colors and serene liveliness.

Some places looked abandoned even though they weren't. It was just temoprary, shops and homes empty of their residents until saftey was fully returned.

  
_I used to play in the Mechanical Garden all the time when I was a kid,_ Minji drew Bora's attention to a spot right on the line separating the affected areas from the intact ones, her hands were tight on the saddle's hand-grips. _It's all ruins now._

The Mechanical Garden was every Jolanian's dream vaction, especially children. It was like a fantasy land with all sort of toys and fun machines and wonders invented by Jolan's greatest minds.

Bora went there once, after she grew up and saved enough coins.

She had had a chance to go there with her parents when she was a child, but pirates had stolen that chance away from her.

Needless to say, Bora couldn't find joy in the Mechanical Garden's wonders even though everything in there felt like coming straight from the dream world.

 _Not all of it got destroyed,_ Bora finally said, and it didn't sound quite right, so she added. _It'll be rebuilt quickly once we get through this, you know the Inventors are always excited to work. They're probably already thinking of a new design and new things to show._

She then mumbled to alert Minji of their ascendance.

 _You're right,_ Minji replied with a soft sigh, a feeling of wistfulness drifting through the link toward Bora.

They had gotten better at the Bond, at sensing each other's movements even before they spoke of them. Bora found it nice, not quite exposing or uncomfortable.

Perhaps Minji had something to do with that, Bora couldn't decide. But the thought was the lingering type, the alluring type that Bora mused on all the things it presented.

Would she have felt this comfortable with another rider?

Something interrupted Bora's thoughts: a huge dragon appeared out of nowhere and almost collided with them if it wasn't for her abrupt change in direction.

Bora screeched, Minji shrieked in shock, but the sharpness of the angle Bora took was dangerous and suddenly she's seeing only the brightness of the sky and feeling only lightness on her back.

Minji fell.

Bora panicked and called for her rider with both a roar and a pained shout. _Minji!_

She's feeling her slipping away from her mind, hearing her scream fade into the wind.

She quickly head downward, piercing the air and searching everywhere until she spotted the whiteness of Minji's uniform. It stood out amidst the burnt ground below. Far below.

 _I'm coming!_ Bora told Minji, but got no reply. _Minji, I'm coming!_

Bora flew faster, the mere thought of losing Minji, of failing to protect her seared through her until she finally caught her with her wings.

  
It wasn't the best way to catch someone midair. Not even the second or third best way, it wasn't a good way at all because now she was freefalling toward the ground.

Bora took the hit without risking Minji getting as much as a scratch when she crashed into an already collapsed building.

  
The impact was grievous, yet the pain Bora felt was so ridiculously little that she suspected she had already died.

But her suspicions quickly came to an end when Minji gasped. She moved and spoke in panic.

"Did it work?! Bora?"

Bora felt her on her, heard her talking, but she couldn't even open her eyes, nor be sure of whether she was hearing Minji inside her head or outside.

She did register that there were loud roars and wings flapping in the distance, then suddenly her head was being cradlled in Minji's arms.

When did she climbed off of her?

"Bora, talk to me! Are you okay? I--I tried to channel the pain through the Bond."

She's caressing Bora's nose and speaking with a trembling voice that tugged at Bora's heart.

_Bora, please answer me._

Minji's voice was inside her head now, Bora was sure.

She wanted to answer, she tried to, but she felt numb. Out of control over her body and floating away from Minji -- floating further into the growing, frightening darkness.

Minji hugged her head, her whisper through their link sounded desperate.

_Bora, hold on. Please. Don't leave._

Bora didn't want to leave. Not anymore.

And not wanting to leave was a want in and of itself that fueled Bora to cling to Minji's voice, to pull herself toward the tiny flicker in the darkness.

  
Minji shrieked when the ground suddenly shook beneath them -- Bora felt that, it made her push herself harder -- she shrieked, but held Bora tighter, and that was what made something snap within Bora.

She regained her full senses and control over her body with a startle, a loud screech.

Then she's numbe in Minji's arms again, except this time she was awake.

_You did what?!_

  
The Bond was for more than communicating, Bora knew that, but her rider channeling pain into it so that it wouldn't shock Bora was something too powerful for a trainee, and yet Minji managed to do it.

It called for admiration, the Medical Rider from the Skilled Forces regarded Minji with respect as he informed her of the best ways to channel the pain out becuase it was still there. Carried by the both of them yet unfelt.

The Bond was weird, Bora had a headache. Maybe she should have paid more attention during the introduction classes.

When he left, he gave Bora a look of disappointment again because apparently scolding her for not following basic rescue techniques wasn't enough.

(Scolding the newbi who had their first shift today wasn't enough, either.)

Bora mumbled as Minji neared her. _Why is he so angry? I'm the one who got hurt._

At the very least, she managed to not fall anywhere near the temporary hospitals and shelters, that got to count for something.

Bora was sore, every movement she made provoked ache to annoy her, but it wasn't unbearable that she had to rest instead of finishing their shift.

"They're just worried, you took a pretty big hit, Bora," Minji spoke, eyebrows knitted together, then added internally. _They don't want to lose any more of us, that's all._

Bora didn't care, or she had planned on not caring, and her plans didn't seem to apply now because she was upset she caused a scene and trouble for the Skilled Forces.

She cared. Everyone was already worried and tired, they don't need more things to worry about.

 _That was a really huge dragon._ Bora eventually said, partially because she wanted to change the topic, and partially because they were really huge. Like, the biggest dragon Bora had ever seen outside of old drawings.

 _She is. The Medics are taking her to the school, she says she didn't notice us, and she's really sorry,_ Minji informed her. _Poor thing, she barely stopped crying._

_What? She told you that herself? She didn't even shift back._

_Yeah, she actually bonded with both me and the Medic at the same time, it's so weird._

_Is that even possible?!_

_I'm not sure, I know that dragons and riders can switch Bonds easily after  a lot, a lot of practice and experience, but this is new to me._

She tried to remember if she had something similar happening when she shifted the first time, but all she remembered was feeling as though the whole world was under will before her wings stopped working and she started falling.

(They didn't stop working, she simply couldn't handle the Dragon Power.)

When Minji settled on the saddle, she asked. _Are you sure you can fly?_

 _Yes!_ Bora answered, and tried to soar into the sky as if to prove it. The movement made her wince and growl.

Minji prevented her from doing another attempt. _Don't go high, we already toured the area, so let's just settle in... hmm, there. The Fairy Castle. That should give us a good view over the place._

_I don't want to, I don't like the Fairy Castle._

It was one of the most popular stops in the Mechanical Garden, and saying she disliked the castle that was rich with fairytales and plays made Minji scoff. Literally.

_No one dislikes the Fairy Castle, it's the best thing in the whole garden. Possibly in all of Jolan._

Bora murmured. _No, it isn't._ She said stubbornly as she looked for an entrance into the castle. A small part of it was damaged, not quiet collapsed, but it would need serious repairs.

Minji didn't push it, but she did pat Bora's neck gently. _Let's agree to disagree for now._

Bora could feel relief slowly and hesitantly spreading within Minji. Within her.

  
They found an opening in one of the castle's towers.

It was so quiet for a weekend in Jolan, but that's because most people had been moved to other sections of the city until the stench of pearls cleared and it was safe enough.

The air inside was heavy with dust and pearls' smell, and even quieter. Bora tested the place first; she stepped hard on the ground and pushed into the walls. And roared loudly, just to check the safety of the place thoroughly. And if there was anyone inside.

Minji climbed down anyway.

She looked around, the hallway was full of decorations and paintings and artifacts. Like a real royal palace.

As she watched her rider, Bora couldn't help but to feel guilty.

 _I'm sorry I dropped you, Minji,_ Bora blurted.

Minji looked at her, brows furrowed. "You didn't," she spoke now, "I fell because I wasn't holding the saddle properly. There is a difference."

 _Still--_ Bora stressed without her notice, fully determined to never let something like that happen again. _I should have paid more attention. My reaction caused you to fall._

"And then you saved me from that fall."

_But if I hadn't gotten to you on time--_

Minji neared her then, her smile disappearing but what replaced it was tenderness and worry painting her features.

 _Bora, if I'm going to blame anyone for this, then I'd blame myself. I should have been more careful._ She spoke through the link, a hand reached to caress Bora's nose.

Bora lowered herself so Minji could reach her without having to stand on her toes, but as she did, she realized how much she liked Minji's touches. They were full of genuine care.

She liked them enough that without her notice, Bora leaned into Minji's hands, purring.

Minji hugged her instantly.

_I won't let you fall again. Promise._

Minji was silent for a moment, and confusion was close to cloud her mind because now Bora wanted to fly with Minji for more time. Way more than the supposedly short period of their guard duty.

But she didn't fall into a chaos of thoughts because through the flowing link between them, Bora felt a gush of warmth; of sheer reliance. Trust.

  
_I know you won't,_ Minji told her, a sense of a smile in her words. Light yet sincere.

  
*  
*  
*

  
Minji didn't snore when she slept. No matter how tired or rested she was, she slept quietly. She also was easily awakened by the sudden screeches sounding from afar, but with the same easiness, she went back to sleep.

Bora couldn't help but to be affected by that.

It was the risk the school had taken by keeping the trainees in the same bond they had started with for this long. Bora became sensitive to Minji, emotions were travelling nonstop between them that there were moments Bora wasn't sure if they were originally hers or Minji's.

The fear was: if they remained bonded with their feeble grip on the Bond itself, they might lose themselves within each other.

It was a dangerous thing to have. Something that could lead to madness, some say.

But even with that, Bora couldn't hate the Bond.

She didn't understand why at first, but after more and more pondering, she found that because she liked Minji -- as a rider.

Yes, just as a rider.

Riders were annoying, but Minji wasn't.

Minji was great.

As she lay at their spot under the anciant oak tree in the Dragon Sanctum, sleepy and a little tired, Bora thought about how being a dragon didn't feel so bad anymore because of Minji.

These past few days, despite the sadness still hovering above Jolan. Despite the mourning and heavy quiet, Bora really felt how truly powerful the Dragon Power was.

Well, when she was bonded, that is.

  
Bora groaned, recalling what happened just moments ago.

She had taken Minji to the Riders' Dormitory to freshen up, and headed for their sleeping spot under the lovely tree that Minji had picked herself. (They had to stay together all the time, and since Bora couldn't shift back into her human form, they had to find a comfortable place for Minji.)

The first few days, Bora had flown to the tree while remaining close to the ground as always, but yesterday, she had managed to soar high and cross the brightening sky with all her might.

She did that even though her bond with Minji had faded somewhere in the distance between them. She had reached the tree without trouble and felt herself fully in control of the Dragon Power.

This morning, this serene and slightly windy morning, Bora had tried to do the same, but she might have overestimated herself because she had barely managed to lift herself off the ground without Minji's help.

(When one of the sanctum's keepers noticed her labored breathing as she headed for the pool, she tried to ask Bora about it but instantly regretted it upon seeing Bora's grim expressions.)

 

After a few more minutes, Minji arrived with tranquility to offer Bora. The Bond worked immediately once they were aware of each other's presence, so even before she spotted Minji with her eyes, Bora found her with her mind. She caught her scent in the wind, familiar and nice.

Ease was instant, seeping through their link to dissolve any residues of ache from Bora's being.

  
_Jinyoung gave me this for you,_ Minji said softly, three pieces of watermelon wrapped in cloth. _She said you looked upset just now._

_I didn't look upset._

_But you are upset._

_But I didn't look upset._

Minji chuckled, she must have already felt Bora's childish annoyance.

_All right then, Jinyoung must be exaggerating. Here, eat this before you sleep._

Bora sat properly, and the first thing she noticed about her rider was her hair being ruffled by the wind.

 _You didn't manage to fly again?_ Minji sat beside her on the blanket.

 _No. I'm starting to feel the Bond is fooling with me._ She answered, probably looking as though she was sulking.

_I'm sure it doesn't. Just give it time._

After that, Minji took one of the tastey looking watermelons, and again, Bora couldn't help but to feel like they were enjoying a picnic. Relaxing in the refresing breeze, surrounded by calmness and the occasional roars.

The feeling had always lingered until one certain, sweet thought brought chaos to Bora's mind. If she was in her human form, they would look as though they were in a date.

  
_We should find us a place indoors if this takes more time,_ Bora told Minji, who craned her neck up to meet her eyes. _It's getting colder, you might catch a cold._

 _It's warm with you,_ Bora. Minji said while eating, then smiled with delight when Bora ended up simply staring at her instead of pushing the matter further.

Bora's heart trembled for a moment. She neared Minji's hands and stole a bite from her piece to distract herself from that familiar, sweet fuzziness and coziness that were washing her inside.

Minji laughed then, a sound that Bora couldn't help but to bask in its beauty.

  
She stayed quiet until she fell asleep with Minji nestled comfortably against her side.

 

Their posts were always either the tower of the side of the city where the Mechanical Garden lay forgotten by most of Jolan.

They met with the others from school during breaks, and in those fleeing moments, Bora found that Minji always tried to check on the other riders.

She asked about how their shift or sleep went, she asked about their bonds and whether there were any hiccups or trouble they needed help with. And from where Bora was standing near the water fountain in the temporary base, It appeared to her that the riders listened to Minji well.

(The temporary bases were set up in different locations throughout the whole city for easier communication and quick access to food.)

Bora couldn't help but to stand a little taller because of that, so to speak. Her shoulders were perked up firmly, posture suggesting pride. Her rider wasn't only the strongest amongst the trainees, but she was respected by them all.

Bora thought she was lucky the Bond connected her to Minji, but then the thought fled and Bora was confronted with the fact that Minji might be too good for her.

Minji was doing her job properly as the trainees' leader.

What was _she_ doing?

What did she _want_ to do, not only now, but later once their guard duty was fulfilled?

 

The city council announced that all Ocean Pearls had fully dissolved and that it was safe to return to normalcy then days after the attack.

  
Bora and Minji watched over their people as they inspected the damaged areas -- their shops and their homes, their schools and their gardens.

At first, Bora thought they were happy to finally picking up their lives and routines, but as the sun travelled the sky and they fley back and forth close to the ground, Bora noticed the undercurrent of quietness, of hurt and hope, in their voices.

They greeted each other with calm smiles on their faces and were quick to help one another clear the waste and rubble.

  
The next day, however, there were more smiles and laughter in the streets, and that unexpectedly brought comfort to their hearts.

(Bora didn't admit it right away, how happy she was to see her city rise after the Ocean Monsters tried to hurt it. She thought the relief and happiness came to her through the Bond connecting her to Minji, who was probably the most caring person Bora had ever met. But it wasn't. Bora was happy the city was safe again.)

  
When night fell that day, their shift ended.

Fully ended.

The expert shifters and riders were to keep guard while the trainess returned to the school to finished their basic training with the remaining teachers.

  
At first, Bora and Minji flew along the sunset, simultaneously resigning to simply keep flying over Jolan as they have been given the night to rest.

  
_We can't go back to school now,_ Minji said as the black sky swept the sun away. _Let's do something fun first._

_What do you want to do?_

_I don't know, I feel like I've memorized the whole city by now. I can't think of anything beyond the view from here._

_We were literally stuck above the Mechanical Garden the whole time. There is still more than half the city that we didn't see from up here._ Bora replied with delight.

 _Then let's go somewhere new, somewhere far._ Minji said excitedly, then the excitement got cut. _Wait, are you tired? Do you want to go back and rest? We could do this another day._

_We won't have another day off, tomorrow we're back to practice._

_Bora._

_I'm not tired. You can even feel that, why did you have to ask?_

Minji didn't reply right away as Bora started to wander toward the other side of the city they hadn't visited before.

_Minji?_

_Because what if I got your feeling wrong? The Bond is supposed to make us see each other clearly, but I feel like I'm still not good at it._

_You are great at it, trust me. I've practically lived with you the past two weeks and you were always quick to know what I needed or was feeling._ Bora told her, willing reassurance in each word because that was the truth. _It's probably me who got what you felt wrong more than once._ Bora added, then her heart paced because what she got wrong, what she mistook for maybe fondness, was actually Minji's kindness. _Anyway, where do you want to go?_

  
_I do,_ Minji then answered in a serious manner. _I trust you._

Bora felt that already, but it was sheer in that moment, especially in the way Minji breathed with relief. A smile must have graced Minji's face then because that's what Bora felt.

She wished she could see that smile right now.

 _Show me your home, we've never talked about it._ Minji answered eventually.

Bora was immediately shocked, but the dislike to the idea that she had expected herself to feel because she had forgotten her home, or tried to, did not arise. She waited in silence still, and waited more for the ache to flicker in her heart. But it didn't, and neither annoyance nor sadness shot through her.

In fact, an image in her mind so vivid appeared with a wisp of excitment.

 _I grew up in the Islands,_ she told Minji. _That's on the other side of the city, are you sure you want to go?_

Minji was surprised greatly. _Really? And you didn't tell me?! I've always wanted to go there, they say the Islands have magical beaches._

Bora suddenly felt inexplicable happiness fluttering warmly in her stomach when not long ago, emptiness had been the first to expand within her whenever she thought about home.

 _They do,_ she said absently, a hint of sadness rising despite herself.

Minji caught on it.

_What's wrong? We don't have to go there if you don't want to. Bora, I--I shouldn't have asked--_

_No, no, it's all right. I just... I..._ Bora hesitated, but the stream between her and Minji remained steady, unconditionally comforting and ready to provide Bora with anything she needed.

And what she needed right now was reassurance. Minji gave it to her endlessly.

_I left when I was fourteen, hadn't gone back there ever since._

She was heading there now. Without her notice, she had already changed directions and was flying along the shoreline, leaving the scene of the battle behind.

 _Do you want to go there now?_ Minji asked gently, _we don't have to go tonight, Bora._

_I want to show you the magical beaches, you'll love them._

 

Minji was so amazed by the Islands' shores that she was speechless. Bora felt her bewilderment easily, and despite herself, it was satisfying.

During the day, the shores were sheer and bright, and people from all over Jolan visited to bask in their relaxing nature.

But in the night, the shores glowed with all shades of purple and blue, and occaisionally, a tinge of yellow and pink and green settled in harmony.

  
There were torches set up along the shores of the seven main islands, proper decks and harbors for visitors and fishers. There were always guards to watch over the Islands and protect them from pirates. Not that pirates would dare inching closer to the Main Islands.

  
For Bora's home, however, there were only the natural glow of the sea that filled the place with spellbinding vividness.

Bora landed on the sand with ease, her claws sinking into it comfortably. She inhaled deeply, the scent was too familiar.

Even after all these years, Bora recognized it.

The small island seemed to be alive with distant laughter and cheers. The waves clashed softly, as well, if only to add to the relief Jolan had finally managed to have after the attack.

"This is so beautiful, Bora," Minji said as she climbed down.

For a moment, Bora was enchanted by the lights of the town that was tucked in the center of the island. They peeked at her from beyond the many trees.

(Bora had picked this side of the island specifically for privacy. She didn't want to see anyone from her past. Not yet, at least.)

  
Bora didn't need to see her old streets or the narrow alleys between the houses to remember her home.

It felt as though she hadn't forgotten any of it. That's probably how she knew why there were shouting and jeering, and music blaring so loud.

_They must be celebrating the announcement._

"By fighting?!" Minji asked, still dazed by the beauty surrounding them.

_Wrestling. It's popular in the Small Islands because there were always pirates around._

_So we have Monsters from one side and Pirates from the other, Jolan can't get a break, can it?_

Bora purred -- she was chuckling. _Don't forget the Wizards beyond the forest, and the Darkness in the Giant mountains._

Minji smiled, but it was clear that she was fixated by the island's glowing water. Its calming movement and color must have gotten to her because she barely took her eyes off to look the town's direction.

_Can we go see it?_

That was a little frightening thought, and Minji sensed it right away.

 _Or maybe another time. We shouldn't be out here late._ She added soothingly.

Bora bowed her head, appreciating Minji's genuineness and wordlessly sending her thankfulness. _Next time._ She promised.

  
In that moment, Bora felt out of her skin. It was a sudden unease, it was as though the dragon form was too heavy to keep despite the Bond remaining unbroken and comfortable.

She realized then that she wanted to shift, that now she could shift back to her human form because they were safe. Everything was under control; the Skilled Forces had been reinforced, and Jolan could finally breath a sigh of relief.

She need to shift, Bora felt. So she shifted.

It was a swift transformation, as always, but this time it's a bit unusual because suddenly she was light and her two legs were jelly-like.

She would fall if she made any move.

She stilled then, held her breath. She looked up, brows furrowed and a little afraid of this unfamiliar numbness.

Minji was staring at her with widened eyes and parted lips, but then she was right in front of her, arms stretched for Bora to catch before her legs gave.

Bora hadn't even noticed the emptiness in her mind, the huge void that the Bond's absence, Minji's absence, left. But now she felt it expanding, engulfing her, and yet she felt grounded by Minji's gentle hands on her waist and arm.

"Take it slow, just breathe." Minji whispered, firm, caring. "The teachers said this might happen, it's completely normal."

She heared Minji as clearly as her own pounding heart, but her vision felt blurry and Minji's words only brought a vague memory of what the teachers had said. "That's a huge understatement." Bora commented breathlessly.

She dug her fingers hard in Minji's arms without meaning to, she only hoped that she won't drift into the void.

She didn't want to be away from Minji.

"I've got you, okay? I'm not letting go, Bora."

Bora could feel her promise, in her voice, in the way she held her tightly. And it was that that made calmness wash her like a tender wave. Her muscles started to relax, she was able to breath again.

Involunterablly, she leaned forward and rested her forehead on Minji's shoulder.

"I'm never shifting again. Training can go to hell."

Minji laughed softly. "We still have to go back to manland."

"We can swim there, that's how I left this place. We just have to get to one of the Seven through the bridges."

Bora wasn't sure she made sense. Maybe she'd have to show Minji the map board first, there was one in every beach as far as she knew.

She stared at the water then, at its gentle turquoise that darkened and darkened until it faded into the depth of the sea. She stared at the neighbouring island, it was a little bigger than Bora's home, but it was all rocks and jagged hills, its shores had a shade or purple along with the turquoise.

The view was mesmerizing, whispering drowsniess into her mind and body.

Minji's warmth was doing the same that Bora couldn't find the strength to pull herself up and stand straight, not when Minji was holding her like that, strongly and safely and reassuringly. And... nervously.

The numbing haze cleared all of a sudden, Bora blinked rapidly.

"I'm naked."

Minji gave a nervous hum, probably too shy to reply that. Her breaths tickled Bora's shoulder, they were warm and shaky.

  
Hesitantly, Bora pulled back and found Minji's eyes.

Minji only gazed back momentraily before looking elsewhere, which made heat surge within Bora. Embarrassed, she awkwardly covered her chest.

  
Minji was so, so nervous, Bora didn't need the Bond to know that because it showed when she fumbled with the tie around her neck to take the cloak off quickly.

"Sorry, it's-- it's a really complicated knot. Cause we-- we have to make sure we won't lose it when we're flying."

It was endearing, really, Bora thought, lips quivering with a smile.

"I know," Bora told her in reassurance.

  
Minji didn't give her the cloak when she finally got it off, she draped it over Bora's body herself, and made sure it was put properly.

  
Instantly, Minji's scent was engulfing her, clinging to her body. It lingered in her nostrails, and Bora had the feeling that it would linger in her mind as well.

She welcomed that, she wanted that.

Minji then brushed Bora's hair behind her ear before she caressed her hair and cheek, almost absentmindedly, and there it was again: Minji gazing at her attentively like... like she's seeing something so important and so beautiful she couldn't bear to miss any of it.

She realized what she was doing with a faint start, and quickly withdrew her hand, clearly worried that she might have overstepped.

She didn't. Far from it. And Bora didn't want her to feel upset.

"It's too long," Bora said, distracted by lingering feeling of Minji's touch, and trying to distract herself form the fact that she liked it.

Minji smiled wide, meeting her eyes. Her smile beamed with joy and happiness, and her eyes were as mesmerizing as the glowing shores, maybe even more.

"I'll get it adjusted first thing in the morning."

Minji said that with such resolve that left Bora internally keening by the meaning behind her words.

Minji was planning on being with her again?

But that realization was what awakened Bora from her sweet daze.

"Wait, we won't get to see each other again until after we finish training, remember?"

Trainees were supposed to train together once they finished the basic lessons, but considering the Bond's effects, the school decided to keep them training separately.

"That's only when you're in your dragon form, they didn't say anything about meeting during off hours." Minji told her, then her nervousness appeared. "I-- I mean, if you want to. We can still meet after practice."

She was hopeful.

"I want to." Bora answered, almost abrupty because she didn't want to make Minji wait. She was close to being consumed by the fuzzy flutters in her stomach. "But I'll be properly dressed, so you still won't have to adjust it."

Minji lowered her head then, laughing in embarrassment. "Right."

  
She looked beautiful under the shore's magical glow.

She was beautiful, and Bora wanted to stay in Jolan forever if only to keep looking at her.

  
Bora wanted to stay.

 

In the end, they didn't swim back to Mainland. They flew close the stars.

As one.

It was the utmost of ease, their Bond, and Bora loved it greatly.


End file.
